Adele Broke Down Crying When Her Former English Teacher Surprised Her Onstage

Adele’s promotional concerts for her new album, 30, have been filled with emotional moments. Last week, while performing at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles as part of the CBS Special, Adele: One Night Only, she helped a man propose to his girlfriend before dedicating a performance of “When You Feel My Love” to the newly-engaged couple. Well, during ITV’s An Audience with Adele, it was the singer’s turn to be surprised.

During the British television special, actress Emma Thompson stood up to ask Adele if there was someone who supported and inspired her when she was younger. Adele immediately started talking about an English teacher she had growing up named Miss McDonald. Unfortunately, Adele revealed Miss McDonald left the school when Adele was in year eight so they only had one year together and they didn’t keep in touch. “She got me really into literature,” Adele said. “I’ve been obsessed with English and, obviously, now I write lyrics."

Adele continued, calling Miss McDonald “so bloody cool. So engaging.” The singer explained that Miss McDonald cared about her students and “she really made us care.”

It’s at that point that Thompson revealed Miss McDonald was in the audience. Miss McDonald then joined Adele onstage and the two shared a hug and caught up briefly as Adele started to cry. “You really did change my life,” Adele told her former teacher.

The moment has caused many others to reflect on their own teachers who impacted their lives. Following the special, many took to Twitter to share their own connections with their former English teachers and it seems that everyone agreed that English teachers are a special breed.